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06/10/2013 |
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NASCAR WHELEN
MODIFIED TOUR TO GIVE STAFFORD ANOTHER GO
Preece Returns To
Home Track With Newfound Recognition |
 Perhaps
the third time will be the charm for the TSI
Harley-Davidson 125 presented by G-Oil.
The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour was originally set
to contest the second of four 2013 races at Stafford
(Conn.) Motor Speedway on May 24. An ominous rain
forecast pushed the race date to June 7, only to
once again meet the same fate. A third attempt to
get the race in is now set for this Friday, June 13.
The postponements have not only affected the NASCAR
Whelen Modified Tour, but Stafford’s weekly NASCAR
Whelen All-American Series program as well. And one
driver who has felt the effects of both, Ryan
Preece, is set to return to his home track this
Friday with some newfound recognition.
Preece, a 21-year-old from Berlin, Conn., was named
last week to the 2013-14 NASCAR Next driver roster.
He’s the first Whelen Modified Tour driver to be a
part of the program, now in its third year. NASCAR
Next is an industry initiative that helps to shine
the spotlight on NASCAR’s rising stars.
Through the course of the next 12 months Preece and
the 12 other drivers selected from NASCAR’s regional
touring series and the NASCAR Camping World Truck
Series will participate in a variety of public
appearances and training events designed to elevate
and enhance their profile to complement their
on-track accomplishments.
Although the latest postponement left Preece with
yet another unplanned night off from racing at
Stafford, it did allow him to participate in the
NASCAR Next announcement that took place at Iowa
Speedway on Friday. He would have been running in
the Whelen Modified Tour and Whelen All-American
Series events otherwise, and would not have been
able to join his new NASCAR Next teammates in Iowa.
Preece made a day trip to Iowa for the announcement,
headed back to Connecticut that evening, then went
down to Long Island on Saturday and won the
prestigious Richie Evans Hall of Fame 100 at
Riverhead (N.Y.) Raceway in Whelen All-American
Series Modified action. Of the 13 newly-announced
NASCAR Next drivers, Preece was one of five that
registered a victory over the weekend.
As the focus returns back to Stafford this weekend,
Preece will be looking for his first Whelen Modified
Tour win of 2013 and will also look to maintain his
lead in the season standings of Stafford’s premier
SK Modified division, where he was the 2011 titlist.
RACE: TSI Harley-Davidson 125 pres. by G-Oil
PLACE: Stafford (Conn.) Motor Speedway
DATE: Friday, June 13
TIME: 9:15 p.m. ET
TRACK LAYOUT: .5-mile, banked asphalt oval
2012 WINNER: Doug Coby
2012 POLESITTER: Bobby Santos
EVENT SCHEDULE: Practice 2:30-3:30 p.m.,
Qualifying 6 p.m., Driver Autograph Session 7:30
p.m.
TRACK CONTACT: Scott Running, 860-684-2783,
scottrunning@staffordspeedway.com
TRACK TWITTER: @StaffordSpeedwy
EVENT TWITTER HASHTAG: #TSIHD125
FAST FACTS:
The Race: The 23rd Annual TSI Harley-Davidson
125 presented by G-Oil will be the third race on the
2013 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour schedule and the
second of four events this season at Stafford Motor
Speedway.
The Procedure: The maximum starting field is
31 cars, including provisionals. The first 26 cars
will have secured starting positions based on
two-lap qualifying. The remaining five spots will be
awarded through the provisional process. The race is
scheduled for 125 laps (62.5 miles) and the race
tire change rule is two tires, any position.
The Track: A half-mile, slightly-banked oval,
Stafford originated as a horse racing track in the
1870s. After seven decades as a horse track, the
dirt oval started holding automobile races following
World War II. Stafford became a NASCAR track in 1959
and was paved for the first time in 1967.
Race Winners: There have been 31 different
race winners at Stafford all-time, led by Mike
Stefanik’s 20 victories. Doug Coby is the defending
winner of the TSI Harley-Davidson 125, the second of
his three victories at the track in 2012. Bobby
Santos won this season’s first race at Stafford.
Pole Winners: There have been 40 different
pole winners at Stafford, led by Stefanik’s 17. Ryan
Preece holds the tour’s track qualifying record at
17.924 seconds (100.424 mph). Bobby Santos set fast
time for this event a year ago, as well as the first
trip to Stafford this year.
Returning to Action: The layoff between the
last Whelen Modified Tour race on April 28 – also at
Stafford – and this week’s rescheduled TSI
Harley-Davidson 125 will be 49 days. That’s the
longest in-season stretch between races for the tour
since a 51-day span in 2006. |
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Source: Jason Cunninghm / NASCAR
Posted: June
10, 2013 |
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